The painful memories of the breakup of West Pakistan and East Pakistan with the latter becoming Bangladesh in 1971, are such an awful recollection of a bitter past which can never be erased from the annals of the history of the subcontinent. Although the tragic event, shortly termed the ‘Fall of Dhaka,’ is still a subject less discussed in the national discourse, the former senator and federal minister of information and broadcasting, Javed Jabbar took the much-needed initiative by producing an English documentary film titled “Separation of East Pakistan – The Untold Story.” Disclosing the lesser known reality about the making of Bangladesh, the documentary was recently screened in cinema halls in Karachi, Lahore and Islamabad.
It was in that connection that the SouthAsia Forum, a private sector Think Tank that regularly analyzes and discusses regional issues confronting the South Asian nation, organized a special talk on the separation of East Pakistan. The talk was hosted and moderated by Syed Jawaid Iqbal, Chairman, SouthAsia Forum, who welcomed the guests and introduced the speakers and also gave his opening remarks about the session.
Senator (r) Javed Jabbar was the keynote speaker on the occasion. Among the other speakers of the discussion were Dr. Huma Baqai and Dr. Junaid Ahmed.
In his address, Javed Jabbar said the documentary on the separation of East Pakistan is not the first or the last attempt to know the obscure facts about the fall of Dhaka in 1971 as how the history has purposefully been manipulated against Pakistan to ensure continued unrest between the two Muslim nations who were once part of the same country.
“After 50 years of the separation of East and West Pakistan, it is time we use the lens of facts and objective analysis to tell the untold story about the reasons that led to the creation of Bangladesh,” Senator (r) Javed Jabbar said.
Speaking on the occasion, Dr. Huma Baqai, an author and Associate Professor at the Institute of Business Administration (IBA) in Karachi, said there is currently a wave of goodwill between Pakistan and Bangladesh and this positive gesture must be continued to lead both the countries towards stronger ties and mutual cooperation in different areas.
In his address, Dr. Junaid Ahmed, who is the author of the book ‘Creation of Bangladesh: Myths Exploded’, focused on demystifying the baseless propaganda peddled by Indian lobbyists, particularly with regards to the mass killing of about 3 million Bengalis in East Pakistan, as such a mass level of carnage committed against the Bengalis could never be a possibility, as falsely disseminated by India.
At the end of the talk, a fiery and interactive question and answer (Q&A) session took place in which the audience had the opportunity to offer their comments and ask questions. The Q&A session was conducted by Syed Jawaid Iqbal, who concluded the event with a vote of thanks. The talk was attended by eminent scholars, intellectuals, celebrities and a large number of people from different walks of life.
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